By Johnmo
my ice plant was growing well last year but this year it looks like a pile of dead twigs,is this normal for fhis time of year or have i lost them
On plant
Lampranthus spectabilis
- 4 Apr, 2010
Answers
Depending on where you garden, you may have better luck with one of the hardy Delospermas, such as D. cooperi.
5 Apr, 2010
mine lived in my garden for ten years but the last two winters have all but wiped them out...;-(
5 Apr, 2010
Funny, ice plant in London means Sedum spectabilis, not Lampranthus as mentioned above.
5 Apr, 2010
Yes, I'd have said that too, Bamboo.
5 Apr, 2010
And if it is Sedum, then it will look like a pile of dead sticks (but with new rosettes of growth at the base). So which is it, Johnmo?
6 Apr, 2010
many f my customers refere to lampranthus as ice plant...i think its a strange name as it hates the frost and ice....
6 Apr, 2010
Many members of the Aizoaceae, including Lampranthus, are called ice plants. Some species' leaves are covered in little sparkly blisters, which look like a coating of ice crystals. A few species come from high altitudes in the mountains of South Africa, and are fairly frost hardy, but most are better suited to Mediterranean or subtropical climates. Many have become part of the beach environments wherever they have been introduced. I have never heard of sedum species being called ice plant where I live.
6 Apr, 2010
It's quite common for Sedum spectabile to be called that here, Tugbrethil. That just goes to show how important the latin name is!
6 Apr, 2010
Previous question
It doesn't like low temperatures, sadly - so I think you may well have lost it. John. Sorry.
4 Apr, 2010